Mutatio
by sydman24
Summary: Yesterday X-men was just a movie, today it's real life. This is the reality two girls will have to face after fighting a teleporter and ending up with Erik and Charles.erik/oc charles/oc cherik swearing and fighting. angst and romance you have been warned
1. What Just Happened?

"Shut the fuck up bitch before I punch your teeth in!" Bri yelled at the top of her lungs. Jillian backed up a step and then steeled herself for the next volley of threats. Jillian was 5'4, two inches shorter than Bri. Shoulder length blond hair that was in slight bouncy ringlets. Topped off with Baby doll blue eyes and a pointy face. She was the stereotypical pack bitch, starting arguments and picking fights, but she never fought. But for the record Jillian was by no means the victim in this scenario. She was the instigator. She was the one to approach Bri and threaten her first, all over a small transgression of territory. But then again crossing of territories was a huge sign of insubordination for a mutant student at CMC (Civilian Mutant College a location for mutants to part of the community and still have free regain to use their powers) but for a non-mutant it was a death warrant. Not that that was a problem for Bri at all. Four out of the seven territories in CMC welcomed her with open arms after she proved that she was more of a threat then some of the stronger level three mutants on campus.

"Bring it, Cunt," Richman said from over Jillian's shoulder. Now if Jillian was the pack bitch that made Richman the packs useless tool. He was six foot three with military cropped hair (its color is unknown to this day) and red eyes. It was part of his mutation he was a Chlormorph, he absorbed the sun's rays and channeled them into attacks; punches, kicks, that sort of thing. The red eyes were a side effect, we all thought he might be an albino, but he never explained it and he was the only Chlormorph to have them. Richman pulled off his sunglasses, a move for him that showed he meant business, and tossed his leather jacket over to Amelia, his present girlfriend. Under the jacket he wore a wife-beater, he couldn't attack unless he was in direct sunlight, and this was why he was only a level two mutant. He had the potential to be a level four or even a lower five but his mutation was worthless in a building or at night. He advanced towards Bri and began to absorb sunlight.

At this point the small group had erected a small crowd of people looking for a good fight. And you might be wondering where I am. So if you have ever been to a good old street fight or territorial mutant fight you will find selection of five different people, each having several variants within them. The first was the fighters in the center. The second were your posy, the idiots screaming "fight" at the top of their lungs. The third; were the betters, the gambling men placing bets and cracking deals. The fourth were the interested bystanders, the main members of the fighting crowd, they were in it for the show; recording, climbing on buildings and normally the ones who go hurt doing stupid shit. And then you had my group. Fifth ring was all the people who were sitting away from the fight, looking disinterested or not paying attention at all. I was one of these people.

I mean what was the point in pushing and fighting for a place to stand when it was 1) going to be on YouTube in five minutes or even streaming live right now 2) in two minutes the crowd would disperse and I would have to fight to get my spot back and 3) the fight would end with; Jillian either sporting a black eye or a broken arm, Richman out cold, and Bri accepted into the fifth territory of CMC. For those of you who were wondering my name is Syd, I've been friends with Bri for the last two years in High School and was now in the same college. I normally have brown hair but right now it is brown with blond highlights (cut short so that it only bushes the tips of my ears) and brown eyes. Like Bri I possess no mutation but have been fascinated by individuals with them since I first saw X-Men in 2000.

Alright now I've lost you. How the hell am I writing something classified as X-Men fanfiction when to me X-men is just a movie? Well for starters life rarely goes the way one plans it, and secondly you decided to read a fic that was actually a journal, updated by Bri or myself on a regular basis. So back to X-men, four movies are out right now and sadly First class just left theaters and I did not get a chance to go see it. But anyway back to the fight.

Bri had beat the shit out of Richman, he was a _really_ bad fighter to begin with, and had punched Jillian in the face. By this point Andreck, the pack leader, had emerged from the business building (the center of his territory) and I had joined Bri in the center of victory. But unless his predecessors who were happy to find that their pack bitches were worthless pieces of shit, he on the other hand was none too happy about it. Andreck was 6'3" as well but unlike Richman he had a brain, and a level five mutation. He was a teleporter by birth but had perfected the art of sending his enemies to remote locations without having to travel there himself, he was rumored to have sent the last leader of his pack to the center of the earth. This was a man you did not want to be on the wrong side of and Bri had just gotten a fast pass, that apparent included me as well.

"Ahhhhh Bri, it looks like we have a problem," I whispered tapping her shoulder and pulling her out of her glorious victory celebration. She turned and smiled at me, her glasses askew from the one blow she had taken from Richman a "lucky shot" she would later claim but she had let him have one punch to lessen his devastation at her hands. Bri was 5'6" as mentioned before with auburn hair this week, it had originally been fire engine red but the color had faded, and gray/green eyes.

"Who the fuck hit my girl?" Andreck asked as he stood over the hysterical Jillian who was curled in a ball on the ground. He glared at the few remaining crowd members, who shied away as was to be expected, and then finally focused on us.

"Andreck, listen I'm sorry but she stepped out of line and was asserting territory when I was well within my right as it was part of a class assignment," Bri was trying to brush off the situation by using the conversational tones of one pack leader (which she was far from) to another. She essentially was digging herself an even bigger hole.

"And who are you Human-scum to stake claim to territory space not within your realm, you do not even have the right to run with a pack, what makes you think you are allowed to speak with me as if you have a right to anything here. You have amused me for now, run along while I let you and don't enter my territory again…either of you." His gaze focused on me alone. I tensed ready for a fight but not really willing to do so.

"Now listen here you son of a bitch, Bri didn't start anything she…" Syd started but stopped as the air around Andreck began to shift and warp. Syd geared up to run the opposite direction but found she was blocked by Richman and two of his brothers( I forgot to mention that he had a total of four brothers and five cousins in the pack all attending CMC and all bearing the same mutation) blocking the way.

"You have assaulted my pack, attacked my mate, and now you insult me. You have quickly outstayed your welcome in my territory and have been told to leave, you have failed to comply with my orders so now you will have to pay the price," Andreck advanced on the two of them, his eyes glossed over white and the air around him clouded by his powers aura.

Syd's eyes widened when she had realized the grave mistake she had made. She turned and grabbed Bri's shoulder, being her voice of reason, in an attempt to drag her out of danger. But her actions where a few seconds to late, and she only realized this when a hand gripped her shoulder so tightly it threatened to break her collar bone like a twig. A blinding hot pain laced through her shoulder and her grip tightened on Bri's arm. One second the world was bright from both the sunlight and from the glow of Andreck's mutation, the next the world went dark, and a second after that…it was green.

Syd coughed as her lungs fought to expand, a teleporter's ability normally made a human feel as if every part of their body had been squeezed through a very tight hole and then stretched rapidly back to normal size. She looked at the ground that she had ended up face planting in and sighed letting herself fall back to the ground in exhaustion. Why did she have to go and say something stupid like that? Why could she never keep her mouth shut? Syd, realizing she could not lie on the ground all day, slowly got to her feet and looked around.

Trees, lots of trees, and apparently no Bri. Syd sighed, picked a direction and started walking. Amazingly it was downhill and ahead she could hear the faint cursing of her friend. Maybe they had gotten lucky and Andreck had dropped them in Madagascar or something like that.

"You alright, Bri?" Syd called. The shuffling and cursing stopped but Syd knew it was centralized in what she hoped was a clearing a few paces away. And as Syd fought through a very argumentative pricker-bush she could see why Bri was cursing.

Apparently fate hated the two of them for some reason (Syd really was thinking about Candide which her professor had made her read last semester) because Bri's right leg was pinned by a fallen tree branch. Syd laughed as she detached her shirt for the fifth time from the bush and walked over to help out her friend.

"It's not funny," Bri growled as she attempted to roll it off of her leg without really rolling it.

Syd laughed again as she watched her friend struggle, "Actually yes it is. But since I am such a good friend and not an ass-hole I shall refrain from recording this to put on YouTube and will help you out." And with that she hefted up one side of the branch and Bri slid her leg out. It took a few seconds to help Bri get to her feet, and she had to lean against Syd to not keel over in pain from her leg. They continued walking in Syd's chosen direction, hoping to find some form of civilization, when the silence finally got to her.

"Alright so I have to ask, did Jillian really start the fight or did you?" Syd, expecting Jillian to be the answer kept her gaze forward to watch where she was walking. But when Bri didn't answer she stopped and looked at her friend. The silence was a problem; Bri was never quiet, hell most times you had to fight to get her to shut up when you got her going. "Bri?" Syd was very hesitant with her prodding question.

"I did," Bri quietly whispered. Normally she wouldn't have a problem to admitting that fact, but today it had gotten them sent to some remote location and her leg busted up. Syd's grip on her arm slackened and Bri fell to the ground. "OW! What was that…?"

"You FUCKIN' started the fight with Jillian! Why in the hell would you do something as stupid as pick a fight with Andreck's BITCH? Why did you have to hit her? Wasn't Richman enough, could you not have called it quits then. Oh no wait I'm sorry you think you have to prove yourself to someone, namely every mutant on campus. So NO of course it wasn't," Syd shouted. She was pacing and screaming and cursing and getting frustrated as she did so. Bri was watching her, trying to insert her reasoning but was cut off every time. "You know what fuck it; you're on your own."

Syd stormed off and Bri struggled to her feet using the tree for support. "Where are you going?" She called after her friend.

"Anywhere," Syd yelled over her shoulder as she continued down the hill. She had been walking for about ten minutes when her anger finally dissipated, and she began to feel guilty. She sighed and stopped, she shouldn't have yelled at her like that, it really wasn't fair. A twig snapped behind her and Syd chuckled slightly. That was fast for a gimped up leg.

"Look, Bri, I'm…" but what she was would remain unknown, for when she turned it was not Bri standing behind her. At first she only saw the barrel of the assault rifle pointed at her face, but then she saw the man holding it. He was wearing a white fur Russian hat; she made the assumption based upon the one her father had at home, and a tweed jacket that was old and faded. He looked like he could have been a poor Russian farmer, but something about him (and the gun he was carrying) said otherwise. Not to mention the brunet standing behind him. She was wearing a greenish/grey beanie and a dark green jacket. She was the one who spoke first.

"My name is Agent MacTaggert and you are under arrest by the US CIA." She spoke calmly but in an uneven tone that suggested that she was unsure of her authority in the situation. Syd cocked her head to the side in confusion. She knew the name MacTaggert, she had heard it before but "agent" did not belong in front of it, Doctor did.

"You wouldn't happen to be Moira MacTaggert, would you?" Syd asked hoping for a negative answer, but today just didn't seem to be her day. Within a split second of each other Bri entered the clearing (in a minor panic because there were people with guns following her) and the woman who apparently not only confirmed her identity as an X-men character, but also gave the order for their arrest. Syd never really figured out what was going on because a bag was placed over her head and she blacked out from shock, Bri's cursing about being an American citizen and having rights ringing in her ears.

**Authors Notes: hope you enjoyed. Please review, at this point we are sitting on four to five completed chapters and the updating will be once a week, unlesssss we get feedback (good or bad) on this fic. So please review and have fun on this crazy ride. **


	2. Well This is New

**Authors note: this fic is written between two people so certain parts will sound slightly different from the main bulk of this first section. Once we finish the beach scene individual chapters dealing with each character will be written by that person. **

"**Person speaking out loud"**

'**Person speaking with Charles telepathically note, it could also be Emma or later on Jean or thinking in general' please review we really want them to fuel motivation and such also this will be updated faster if there are some End authors note. **

Bri was not happy, not happy at all. After having a bag thrown over her head and her hands tied she was lead to a truck sitting behind a cluster of trees. Levene was dragging an unconscious Syd to the truck. Two soldiers circled around and saluted the small group as they approached. Bri was unceremoniously thrown into the back of the large truck and lifted onto one of the benches. Syd was dropped next to her and the door closed. Bri sighed in frustration as Syd's head lulled onto her shoulder as they went over a bump.

"Where are you taking us? I want answers I am an American citizen god damn it! I have rights!" Bri yelled at the flap on the wall that separated her from the driver (Levene) and the woman. The truck stopped and Bri was thrown forward. Syd slouched to the side, still out. The door opened and Bri geared up to begin yelling again when a gag was tied around her mouth. Once it was secured she was lifted back to the seat again and Syd was sat back up.

'That sons of fucking bitches, they fucking tied me up and threw me in this fucking truck, they can't do this I am a citizen and they are gonna be in so much shit when I get through with them. Mother fucking ass holes and there soldiers.' Bri was swearing up a storm around the gag. It came out like "uhmuph gaumas inafusho upm funth…" 'Oh, oh who is this? Some pompous ass hole who thinks he's all that. Oh and look he has a friend. Yeah keep walking dip fuck sashaying your hips like your all that, with some uh uh uh.' Bri shuffled her hips from side to side in a cocky mimic and started moving her shoulders up and down at the same time. Syd's head was bounced off of the side of the truck after Bri's shoulder.

Syd blinked repeatedly to clear her vision. She was in the back of a vehicle looking at a solider. The guy looked none too happy and something hit her arm. Syd glanced to the left, Bri was moving around like she was seizing. She was gaged and her arms were tied behind her back. Bri looked pissed so Syd decided that upset sulking was the best idea. So she slouched down and put on her best pissed off face, that is until she looked to her right.

Syd's eyes widened as she found herself staring at two men. 'Hello hot guys.' She thought and the shorter of the two with sky blue eyes smirked and winked at her. He had his left hand pressed to his temple, more specifically his first two fingers. 'Wow look at him. Oh my god he looks like James McAvoy. Oh my good he looks so much like Wesley for Wanted. Have you heard the news, bad things come in twos. But I never knew bought the little things. Haha I am Magneto and I can bend bullets with my mind like a boss. Holy crap the other guy looks like Michael Fassbender ahhhhhh he looks like Stelios from 300. Haha fight in the shade...'Syd's mind was running a mile a minute and the McAvoy lookalike was still sitting with his hand on his temple. Bri was still rocking in every direction and bouncing around.

That was how the rest of the truck ride went. The poor guy was sitting there observing the two girls, occasionally glancing over at his friend. 'Is this really necessary Erik?' He asked on one of the last lookovers.

The other man replied in his mind, 'Yes she is still moving about i want to know what she is thinking.'

'It's been the same for the past hour. Why is this so important to you?'

'Because she is interesting and she might be working for Shaw.'

The conversation ended abruptly when the car came to a stop, the doors opened, and all of them were pulled out of the back. When Syd got out she was confronted with a huge jet. She stopped looking at the jet and then looked over at Bri who looked just as awestruck. "Bri is that?"

"Uh huh"

"And do you think that?"

"Uh huh"

"So then we're?"

"Yep"

The two got pushed along into the jet. Syd looked back over her shoulder at the small group of people following them. She was floored when she saw a woman being marched in the center of a large group of troops. She was about Syd's height and was a stunning blonde. She was led to the back of the ship and the locked up. Syd followed Bri who in turn followed the two men, who they ended up sitting across from. Syd was sitting across from the McAvoy lookalike and Bri was across from the Fassbender one.

"My name is Charles Xavier and this is Erik Lensherr." any retort that Syd or Bri would have had to that comment died long before they could think of it.

"Charles and Erik, as in Xavier's institute for gifted youngsters?" Syd asked, head cocked in confusion.

"I don't think that you are referring to the same people. We are working with the CIA and..."

'Charles I don't think it is such a good idea to inform them of that.'

Charles looked at his friend quizzically and answered his friend out loud, "Erik they are not from this time period. I have been going through Sydney's mind and she has been thinking about actors in movies very similar to us. I don't even think they are from this universe as she has phrased it."

Syd's eyes grew wide as she realized that this man had been reading her mind the entire time they had been in the truck. And he hadn't found out about the x-men. She looked over at Bri and knew that she was thinking the same thing as she was. This was x-men. First class. This was prior to the division of Charles and Erik, before the bill for mutant identification, the revenge of Stryker or even the cure. Any move they made could result in a catastrophe that could destroy the very future of this world.

Realizing they had fallen into a semi-uncomfortable silence Syd tried to rectify the situation because Bri sure as hell was not going to talk, "my name is Sydney Robinson and this is my friend Brianna Dunlap. We are from the US and go to school at CMC in New York. Where are we exactly?"

"You my friend are considered a threat to national security. We are presently leaving a soviet occupied area. And right now we are on our way to Lancaster Virginia to a CIA outpost. Agent Aarons facility to be exact. You two will be kept with us. As of right now Erik and I are the only two who know that you ate not from this time period and I shall endeavor to convince Moira that you should stay with us." Charles smiled as he leaned closer to Sydney. "And between you and me I would like very much to get to know you better."

Syd leaned back and looked over at Bri who was laughing. Syd glared at her friend, casually crossed her arms, crossed her legs and while smirking asked, "would you really? Well I for one would love to get to know you better as well Professor Xavier." as soon as she spoke though Syd's eyes widened and she quickly threw a hand over her mouth.

Charles smirk fell and he slowly brought his hand up to press his middle and fore finger to his temple but Syd stopped him. "Please don't do that. If it's anything you needed to know I will tell you but please." Charles sighed and dropped his hand back into his lap. Syd gave him a shy smile and snuck back into her chair.

Bri on the other hand had spent the amount of time that Syd was "flirting" with Charles acting like she was going to throw up. Making sick faces and gaging. Erik, who normally thought antics like this were childish and immature, was chuckling under his breath. This girl was tolerable at best and would be a bit of a refreshing experience after Raven. They didn't talk at all though Bri, knowing all about Erik and realizing he was not one for idle conversation, was desperately attempting to find a subject with which she could use to convey a stimulating conversation but she was not the history buff and had no idea what year it was. For all she knew a comment involving the phrase "how bout those commies." Could result in being shunned due to ignorance. So to avoid this she kept her mouth shut and waited for Erik to say something. An event she knew would probably never happen.

Both girls had ended up falling asleep not long after and Charles and Erik took the opportunity to discuss the situation. Erik being the one to voice his opinion first, "I don't like this at all. The two of them conveniently being in Russia the same time as Shaw is supposed to be there and know who we are based upon what you saw in Sydney's mind, far too suspicious to be a coincidence."

"You're not suggesting that Shaw is working with humans to kill off humans now are you. After what we found out from Emma I cannot accept your reasoning, Erik. These two need our help. They are lost and alone in this world just like many of the mutants we are trying to help are."

"But that's the difference isn't it. Shaw and them, they're humans, Charles regular people who have no reason to fear anything that is happening to them. They can walk outside as normal people and will never have to hide."

"I don't want to argue this with you Erik. The two of them are staying with us; they have nowhere to go and no one else to help them if we don't. You have been free to leave since the beginning." and with that the conversation ended Charles relaxed and fell asleep and Erik sat on high alert watching the door that led to Emma's cell closely. Ready to bolt it in place if need be.

They spent the rest of the trip talking about random general information (e.g. favorite colors, food, past times, reading materials etc.) all except for Erik who was watching the door the whole flight. At one point even Moira came back and was talking with Charles about the girls and as promised, he told her that they had to stay close to him (something about being strong telepaths or something) and she believed him. Everything was going smoothly until the jet landed and they had all unloaded. Emma was in a nice small cage, to be transported to the prison like rooms underneath the CIA headquarters and the others were on their way to the new mutant division base.

"Agent MacTaggert, we had a situation at the base last night. We were attacked by Shaw and his men," a young solider said as he walked with Moira.

"Damn," Erik growled under his breath as he walked faster.

Charles on the other hand panicked and ran to catch up with the three of them leaving Syd and Bri hanging out several paces back, "What of Raven? Is my sister okay?"

"The mutants are fine, well, all except for one at least. The Latino girl left with Shaw and his men apparently but one of the boys, Darwin I think, was killed."

Charles at this point was nearly hyperventilating from the stress, "get in the car." all of them climbed in (Erik driving of course who better to pilot a speeding _metal_ death trap going 150 mph then a metalbender) and they spend off to the facility.

It was a mess, chunks of broken rock and glass was scattered everywhere. A small group of kids sat on a small stone bench that had somehow survived. As Charles got out of the car another blond girl ran over to him and embraced him in a hug, "I'm so happy your back."

Charles broke away from the hug and spoke to the rest of the group, "we've made arrangements for all of you to be taken home immediately."

"We're not going home," a red headed boy with sunglasses said. He leaned over and looked at the blonde boy sitting next to him, "He's not going back to prison. None of us are going anywhere."

"Yeah, Darwins dead. We have to do something about this," the blond said. He got up from his seat and walked over to Charles, "and I for one am not going anywhere until I have received comfort in the fact that his killer is no longer out there."

"No this is far too dangerous for any of you to..." Charles started but Raven cut him off.

"Darwin is dead Charles and we can't even burry him," Raven was almost at the point of tears when a brown haired boy with glasses got up and wrapped a comforting arm around her.

"Alex is right Charles; we can, and must avenge him." Erik spoke up finally (it was actually the first time either girls had heard him speak at all).

"Erik a word please?" Charles asked and led him off to the side.

Syd and Bri stood on the edge of the rubble line looking around when Raven's voice brought them back to reality, "hello my name is Mystique; this is Hank, Havoc, and Banshee. Who are you guys? Are you more mutants that my brother found?"

"My name is Sydney." Sydney said giving a short wave.

"Bri," Bri introduced herself as well.

Raven's face lit up," as in short for Brianna?"

"No it's just Bri."

Sydney jumped in before Bri could start threatening the poor girl and said," to answer your second question we don't have a mutation. And how are you related to Charles?"

"He's my brother." Raven answered and Syd nodded happy to have defused the situation.

Charles had turned around to face the group. "We'll have to train," he looked at the group and focused on Moira, Bri and Syd. "All of us." Hope filled everyone's eyes, everyone but Hank.

Hank removed his arm from around Raven's shoulder and walked over to Charles, "But we can't stay here. Even if they reopen the facility it's not safe, we have nowhere to go." Everyone looked downcast again.

Sydney looked over at Charles who also looked defeated. Syd sighed and waited a little longer for Charles to realize the obvious answer, when he didn't, she face palmed and then gave a fake cough. Charles looked up confused, he slowly placed his hand on his temple and attempted to read her mind. 'Remember,' her voice filled his head. 'Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.'

Charles blinked and smiled then said out loud, "Yes we do."


	3. The Mansion aka Syd is a Dumb Ass

**Authors Note: thank you to our two reviewers. Your words are part of the reason that we are continuing to write this, (the other is our amusement) but thank you again and hopfully others will join your ranks. **

'This place is fuckin' huge!' Syd though as she looked out of the back of the army issued convoy truck. She was sitting next to Hank who gave a low whistle of appreciation. The truck had followed along a long gravel driveway that lead up to the house, mansion not house correction there. They pulled past and parked a little ways off from the main door. Charles got out from the driver's seat and opened up the tail-gate to let them out. Alex and Hank dropped out first, and ever the gentlemen Hank helped Raven and Syd out and Alex held his hand out for Bri.

"Couldn't let a pretty thing like you get hurt dropping out of a beast like this," Alex commented when Bri was safely on the ground. Unknown to him, Alex's actions had earned him a death glare from Erik.

Syd went to swing herself out and drop down when she felt a set of arms wrap around her face and pull her out. She freaked and let out an EAP of shock.

'Don't worry ' Charles voice filled her head. 'I won't drop you.' Syd looked up from where her head was buried in her arm, around to Charles' smiling face. She let go of the side of the truck and fell into his embrace.

Syd smiled at Charles and wrapped her arms around his neck, and looked down at him. "You can let me down now Charles," Syd laughed as he blushed and apologized furiously in her mind. 'Don't worry about it.'

Erik, who was ignoring the whole situation walked over towards the mansion and then turned back to Charles and said, "Honestly, Charles I cannot imagine how you ever survived in such hardships." it was a sarcastic remark and Raven had a sarcastic response ready.

"Well it was a hardship softened by me," she smirked and Charles kissed the side of her head. "Come on time for the tour." she lead the way into the house and the group followed, all except for Syd and Bri.

"Is this a good idea?" Syd asked turning from the building to look at the open field that ran alongside the driveway.

"Why wouldn't it be? We aren't really kind anything to mess up the time line are we? I mean Xavier is making the institute all on his own and... He did do this on his own didn't he?"

"He might have had a little help."

"SYD! What the hell were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that if he never thought of the institute then none of the x-men stuff would happen and that..."

"Sydney, Bri come on I've gotta show you guys up to your rooms still," Raven's voice echoed from the second story window. Seconds after she pulled her head back in Erik poked his head out. Syd laughed and waved at him. Erik nodded then returned to his room.

"Who were you waving to?" Bri asked looking behind her.

"Erik," Syd replied smiling to herself.

"Oh no, no no no. Erik is mine. You can flirt with pompous pretty boy Xavier all you want but mister tall dark and mysterious is mine. Understood?" Bri said slowly backing Syd up to a stone railing. Syd nodded and Bri backed up. "Alright good. Now raven said something about rooms and I'm tiered so I'm going to go find her."

Bri walked inside and Syd sighed and learned against the short railing staring out at a large satellite dish that sat a mile or so out.

'Don't worry about what she said; your friend is probably just worried over nothing. I for one am very grateful for your assistance yesterday. Now come inside, Erik is about to help us with some of the plans for training.' Charles voice filled her head. She sighed and walked into the main room.

There were three couches situated around the entertainment room along with a few chairs, two of which were occupied. One by Alex and the other by Charles who sat reclined to the left side with his arm on the arm rear and his hand resting on his temple. Raven and Hank sat close together on one of the couches and Sean sat in the center of the middle one with his feet up on a coffee table and Bri sat next to him on his right, staring directly at Erik who was standing by a black board that had been pulled into the center of the room and had a grid on it. Moira stood next to it with a piece of chalk in hand.

"Alright," Erik said announce coloring his voice. Syd dropped on to the couch on the other side of Sean and within arm's reach of Charles "Now that all of us are here, this," he tapped the board," is our training plan. Each of you will have a one on one session with me for physical training. Sean is on Monday, Alex Tuesday, Hank Wednesday, Sydney is on Thursday, Charles is Friday and Bri your on Saturday."

"Wait wait wait why doesn't Moira have to haves physical training one on one day?" Sean asked sitting up and interrupting Erik.

"Because if the CIA is even half as competent as it claims to be then she should be in good enough shape in the field of hand to hand combat that she shouldn't need to have any extra training. Now after the training for the day is done then each of you will have two hours with Charles. In the case of Bri and Syd you will be there for an hour and then with Moira for an hour. Speaking of which Moira you are free to do with the beginning of the day as you please but the two hours with Charles you will be required to attend." Erik surveyed the room and then an evil smirk crossed his face. "Now as we have little time to train we will be starting today. That means Syd you have ten minutes to get changed into some loser clothing and meet me outside." Erik walked out of the room and Sydney slammed her head off the back of the couch and groaned. She got up and walked out of the room. Bri was laughing.

"Now for my turn," Moira said tapping the chalk board. "Bri you're with me in the back. Charles has graciously allows for us to use a segment of the back court yard for a shooting range, so come on."

Bri got up and followed Moira out of the room and passed Syd as she came running down the stairs in a pie of Greg sweat pants and a sweat shirt and ran outside but shouted a "Charles told me where my room was and I found these in the dresser. See you soon." and then she ran out to meet Erik. Bri sighed and walked throughout the mansion to a backdoor located in the back of the kitchen. The paved section of the back courtyard was set up with targets. That had a distance of the mansion from where Moira and she stood. In front of Moira was a table with a small assortment of guns ranging from a smaller hand pistol to a sniper rifle.

"Today we are going to establish where your aim is and then go from there. Your targets are fifty feet away," alright so maybe not the entire distance of the mansion more like a fourth. "And you will be shooting with a pistol. 30 shots and based upon your accuracy we will move the targets back." she motioned for Bri to take the gun from her and after showing her how to turn off the safety let Bri shoot at her leisure.

One hour later Bri was released for a break, the targets having been moved back three times and her aim was improving, so she made her way to the front and sat by one of the peculiar pyramid bushes. She had been sitting there for five minutes when Syd slowly made her way to the lawn from the far side of the driveway, the part that lead back to the road more than a mile back, and collapsed to the ground. "You okay?"

"Just...peachy. Your...boyfriend...is trying...to kill me," Syd panted out and Bri smirked and took another sip of water before passing it over to her friend who drained it in two large gulps. Syd lay there panting for air for a few more minutes before Erik jogged up and stood over Syd, nearly breathing heavy and not a hair out of place.

"On your feet Robinson. We have one more lap to go. And if you don't keep up with me this time round I will be extending our meeting time to two hours so we have a whole hour to just run." Erik jogged in place for a few seconds and then looked at Bri, "I wouldn't laugh if I were you. We'll see what you are capable of tomorrow." and with that he started off at a light sprint. Syd sighed and got up to follow him, at a dead run to catch up to him. Bri grabbed the empty water bottle and walked back into the mansion to despise of it then go to meet back up with Moira.

After another twenty minute jog and getting the shit kicked out of her by Erik, who did not go easy on her the fucking liar, she trudged inside to meet with Charles. "Ah good you're here. Well think of this as a bit of a relax period before you have to go shot with Moira you will be participating in a mental exercise with me," he said motioning for the chair across from him. She sat in the chair and looked at him quizzically; between them was a chess board.

"You want me to play chess with you?" Syd asked. She knew that Charles loved to play with Erik but she never thought of it as a mental challenge more one of strategy. Charles nodded and motioned for her to go first. Which she did and moved the center most black pawn forward two squares.

'Interesting first move but I am far more interested in how this will help in the long run. Your normal strategy for a defensive play will not help as I am a defensive player as well.' Charles spoke in her mind.  
>Syd glared at him as he spoke to her. 'Stop cheating,' she shot back.<p>

'This is part of the exercise as well, Sydney. You have to keep me from wing able to read your mind so that you can win one round with me. We have a whole hour together to play so are you ready?' Syd looked at him shocked how the hell was she supposed to keep him out of her mind while she focused on the game? 'Don't worry too much about it keeping me out is hard for some more experienced mutants, Raven for example though I promised not to read her mind, and I will show you how to build a basic wall it will be up to you to strengthen it.'

Syd nodded and let Charles guide her through how to construct a simple mental barrier and then began to slowly tear it down. Bit with each block he broke down Syd replaced with two more, as if she had been on the receiving end of something like this before. After several minutes of this game Charles stopped and sighed, "You are very good at that. Have you been taught how to shield before?"

"Bri taught me, her brother is a telepath and is also a dick sometimes. When I used to go over he would read our minds and then play dirty tricks with hallucinations and such. She has learned to stop him from being able to get into her mind and taught me some of the basics." Syd answered and Charles laughed.

"Well then let's play a game," he said moving one of his pawns and then passing the turn. Syd focused on the board but felt something in the back of her mind. She looked up and sure enough Charles had his hand to his temple concentrating. On her turn every turn Syd had to fight to keep Charles out of her head and think of an acceptable move that would not end with her losing the game. If didn't work and out of a total of five games Syd came close to winning one, but by the end she was able to. Keep a majority of the mental blocks up even against Charles working at his fastest pace (he lost concentration on the board and that was how she almost won).

The week continued on like this for the most part and when Syd woke up the next Thursday and found that Erik had changed the amount of time they had. She now was working with him for three hours, last week it was two and even the she was beaten to a pulp by him in half an hour for hand to hand combat. But this also gave Alex an extra hour with Charles and he seemed to need it the most. But she was not happy at all with Erik, so she divided a plan to get back at him.

Every morning Erik got up early and ran around the perimeter of the mansion with the last stretch of it being a narrow path through the woods. Sydney had spent the better part of last night devising traps to either nock him unconscious or give him a broken leg. So Syd waited by the stairs on Tuesday morning and watched as he left the school. She grabbed the trip wire and ran for the back door. She had about twenty minutes go assemble all of the triggers.

"What are you doing?" Bri asked as she watched syd walk out into the early morning from her spot at the kitchen counter. Syd jumped and nearly lost all the wires she was holding. "Because if you're doing what I think you are doing then it will not work."

Syd ignored her and continued on. Bri shook her head and settled down on the slightly wet lawn and waited for something to happen. And sure enough it did half an hour later. The sound of trees snapping and Syd screaming in terror echoed across the open space. Bri ran down the path to see Syd hanging from a tree in a large netting system. She watched, from the safety of some bushes, as Erik walked up and stopped underneath Syd.

"When you finally untangle yourself from that meet me at the far end of the drive way. You will be running the length of it with five times." and with that he walked off. When he was gone Bri stepped out of the bushes.

"You used metal trip wire didn't you?" Syd nodded

"Bri when he kills me can you have my body burned Jedi style?"

"I'm not too sure Erik will allow that, what with his past and all."

"Tell him its part of my religion,"

"He doesn't believe in organized religion remember."

"Fuck me,"


	4. Revenge Attempt 2

**Authors note: We are playing with the time of going to find Logan. I needed them out of the house for the part of this fic that was the basis for us writing this in the first place. As always review please and enjoy. **

Bri stood there for what seemed like hours watching Syd struggle with the wires all the while laughing and saying I told you so. Unknown to them it had been hours considering everyone was looking for them, and they found the two moments later due to following the sounds of Bri's laughter, and Sydney's curses. The scene that they stumbled upon was beyond word. There was Bri literally on the ground holding her ribs from laughing so hard gasping for breath as she said, "I told you it wouldn't work. Try to use metal trip wire to try and trap a 'metal bender'."

"Shut the fuck up Bri, you are just rubbing salt in the wound."

"That is what I am here for, to show you just how human you really are."

"Yes. We all know your perfect cuz you never act on impulse, and you never get you or others in trouble."

"See, I never said that I never get in trouble, trouble is my middle name, and impulse is my game, and as for payback and anger that is how I act, obviously that's how I landed us here in this 'Alternate Universe' cuz I have almost no impulse control."

"So you finally admit it, this is your entire fault."

"Syd, I never denied it. You just never asked. Well besides asking who started the fight with 'little miss perfect' and I admitted to annihilating the two assholes, even to his face I did not deny it. I take pride in what I do, and never look back just act and deal with the consequences as they show up."

"…Really?" The tone in her voice made Bri look up at her face. She had the biggest most evil Cheshire grin on her face.

Bri face palmed. "Fucking great now you're going to make me do something, and knowing you…" her sentenced was cut off by someone clearing their throat. Syd and Bri both jumped and looked at the path. There stood everyone Charles, Erik, Moira, Alex, Raven, Hank, and Sean, all looking a little almost flustered.

"Finally we found you" Charles spoke. He was looking from Bri to Syd and he finally voiced the question they could see imprinted on everyone but Erik's face "What happened? How did Sydney end up netted to a tree?" His questions only succeeded to start another round of laughter from Bri and another set of grumbles From Syd.

Finally after Bri got done laughing and could form a comprehendible sentence "Syd, was mad at Erik for making her work out so much and for beating her to a pulp so she was going to try and get back at him by tripping him with some wires while he was on his morning run. The downfall to her plan she was using metal wires. So after she tried to trip him Erik tied her to the tree and told her that once she gets down to meet him at the far end of the driveway because she was going to run it five times, and well she hasn't gotten down yet and not for the lack of her trying either."

"Well, if that's the case does someone want to help her down?" Charles suggested.

"I did try, but she completely objected something about not wanting Erik to be even angrier with her or me, personally I don't care I have dealt with worse tempers. However, if it is all right with Erik I will climb up there and get her down. It looks like fun and I've been so bored lately."

All eyes turned to look at Erik, who sighed in defeat "Fine, you may help her get down."

"Yes!" Bri exclaimed as she climbed the tree. When she reached the branch Syd was tied to she pulled out a military grade Swiss army knife that never left her pocket. She turned to the miniature 'wire cutters' (my name for the super scissors in this case) and began to cut at the wires holding her. She was free in a matter of a minute and they made their way back down the tree. But of course, nothing can go smoothly as Syd went to step on a branch she slipped and started to fall from the tree. In a split second, Bri reacted wrapping her legs around the branch swinging herself upside down and catching Syd by the ankle all while she tensed up and screamed for her life. "Syd, Syd, SYD, SYDNEY!"

"What?"

"Stop screaming and open your eyes"

"Ok" Syd opened her eyes to an upside down vision of the world. "Bri?"

"What?"

"Why am I not dead?"

"Maybe because I caught you before you hit the ground."

"Really? Thanks. But I have another question?"

"And what is that?"

"How are we going to get down from here?"

"You are going to give me your hand so I can let go of your ankle and then I will let you fall or someone can catch you even though it's only like a three foot drop from the bottom of your feet to the ground." (That makes it an eight and a half-foot drop from tree branch to ground for those of you who were wondering)

"Um… ok but I have just one more question?"

"What?" Bri responded not bothering to hide the growing irritation in her voice.

"How are you going to get down?"

"I do not know yet, but I'm not even worried about that right now. We just need to get you on the ground. So on three. Ready. One. Two. Three." On three Syd reached up and Bri grabbed her hand, or tried to, let go of her ankle. Syd who was attempting to grab at Bri's had missed by several centimeters fell to the ground and landed on her back to no one's amazements "Well that didn't go as planned."

"No it didn't," Syd groaned out as she got to her feet slowly. "So now how are you getting down?"

"Oh that's easy I'm going to jump."

"WHAT!" It wasn't just Syd who spoke this time.

Bri just rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I said that I was going to jump down to the ground from this tree branch. There I even said it slower so it would be comprehended better." she did not even give any of them a chance to react before she jumped from the tree and miraculously did not land on her face or even fall on her ass, she landed on her feet. Bri stood with the biggest smile on her face "Well now that was exhilarating." She said while turning around to face the rest of the group.

She waited for someone to say something anything but there was only stunned silence. But out of the corner of her eye, she caught the smallest of twitches on the corner of Erik's mouth right before he turned and started walking back to the house. "Well since you all want to just stare at me like I'm a freak of nature I'm going to go back to the house because I need a shower." Bri walked past them and they all then proceeded to follow her back to the house.

Syd sat on the second bed in the room and waited for Bri to come back from the shower. It made no sense that a mansion with a crap ton of rooms only had one bathroom per floor, nor did it make any sense that Bri had to sleep in the same room. The only upside to this, in Syd's eyes, was that planning revenge, though not very effective, was far simpler when they could sit in the same room and talk and not look suspicious.

"So you know how my original battle plan of revenge ended up falling through?" Syd asked when Bri reentered the room and sat down on her bed to dry off her hair. Bri stopped what she was doing and left the towel draped over her head and glared at Syd. "Now I know what you're thinking, and I was thinking that we can both kinda have our revenge on the two of them. But it will be when they are gone, or at least out of the house for a while."

"What are you planning?"

Alex, Sean, Raven, Moira, Bri and Syd sat on the floor in the hallway leading to the bunker; it was large enough that four people could walk side by side Syd and Bri knew this hallway to be the path to Cerebro, which was what Erik, Charles and Hank were building. Presently they were arguing about the Derilium, the blue crap that mystique poisons in the first movie, and how it would be a good/bad idea to use that as a main power source to harness in Charles focus. In the end Erik and Hank won and the Derilium was used (it was Charles who thought it would not be necessary seeing as he had "great" concentration) and the rest of the sphere was built. Erik had built the metal paneling that would make up the walls and the path for Charles in the center, Hank had built the center console that would be used to control and activate the machine, and Charles provided the telepathic mind.

After a total of four hours, this mainly consisted of Erik having to use a large metal shovel to carve out the circular dimensions for the room; Charles was standing in the center of the dome ready to use the new and improved Cerebro for the first time. Erik and Hank stepped out of the room and the door shut behind them. All of them waited for the door to reopen which signified that Charles was done searching. And when it did he walked out smiling.

"Another one has surfaced, he's in Canada and is far older than the others, no offence," Charles concluded as he looked at Sean, Alex, and Hank. All of them nodded, entirely understanding what he was alluding to. "…So Erik and I will take a trip to go see him. Raven, Moira you are in charge while I am gone."

Charles practically ran in his excitement. Erik sighed and followed him. In a matter of minutes the two had left for Canada, they would be gone for an undetermined amount of time. Sydney looked over at Bri and smiled. Time to put the plan into action, but first.

Sydney followed Hank to his lab and handed him a sheet of paper with specs on it, "Can you make it?"

Hank looked at the pages and then back to Syd, "Of course I can. I will just have to work on the reading beam, but some of this stuff, the technology needed for it, it hasn't been invented yet."

"No, I know. That's what this is for," Syd handed Hank the mother boards and most of the internal parts needed to make the glasses. Hank smiled and got to work. Syd laughed and made her way to her room. Now for the fun part.

Sydney grabbed two large black garbage bags from inside of their closet. She opened them and pulled out a plain white t-shirt, it was a medium, from one bag. She passed it over to Bri, who laughed and ran out of the room and down the hall. Syd grabbed the remaining bag and walked down the hall, three doors down, and into Charles room. She dumped the bag on the bed, it was full of t-shirts and jeans, and then began to pull all of Charles suit jackets, pants and button up shirts from the chest of draws and closet.

"What are you doing?" Syd stopped and looked up. Raven was standing in the door way, arms crossed suspiciously. "Those are my brother's clothes."

"Yes well, I was going to play a little trick on your brother, Bri is working on Erik. And yes before you ask I am fully prepared for the consequences this time. Bri is replacing Erik's turtle necks with tight t-shirts, but I'm gonna replace Charles' suits with jeans and t-shirts," As Syd spoke, Raven smiled.

"Then count me in."

Charles and Erik came home irritated and upset. Not only did the mutant not want to join in the club but it had started torrential down pouring when they had arrived at the mansion, it had stopped as soon as they entered it. A very soaked Erik stormed past the awaiting teens and up the stairs to his room. Charles stopped and explained to Moira what happened and then began to climb the stairs. But by that point Erik who was wearing no shirt and a pair of jeans, he was holding the shirt in his hand, came storming down the stairs.

"Where are they?" he demanded walking over to Sydney. Charles, picking up images from Syd's mind, ran up to his own room to find most of his clothes missing. Syd backed up and motioned with her head in Bri's direction. Erik growled and turned to look over at her. "Where are they?" he asked again. Bri smirked but did not answer. Charles slowly came back down the stairs and looked at the two. He sighed and placed his left hand to his temple and concentrated. He watched Syd replace the clothing in his room and then throw the bags in the dumpster out back. He sighed and relayed the information to Erik. With that he went back upstairs to get changed, though he refused to wear the t-shirt, and followed Erik out back.

Charles and Erik were none too happy to find out that their clothing was gone, so Charles searched Syd's mind and found that she (more like Bri) had thrown the bags in the dumpster out back. So that was exactly why a shirtless Charles, who had refused to wear a t-shirt but put a pair of pants on for decency's sake, was leaning against the dumpster out back while something went through the dumpster.

"Erik!" Charles called over his shoulder. His response was a load of garbage shifting. "You know you could have just dumped the dumpster instead of going through all the garbage." Erik's head came up over the edge and a glare was plastered on his face that he normally saved for the few Nazi party survivors who he let live.

"Shut up, Charles," he growled and then dropped back in and continued searching. He did not reemerge for another four hours and by that point Charles was freezing. Erik, who was wearing a pair of jeans and one of the grey sweatshirts, climbed out and pulled a banana peel from out of his hair and threw it back into the garbage. "There not in there, there are not large black garbage bags full of clothing."

"Oh! That's what you were looking for?" Bri stood on the hill; she had been watching them for the past hour or so. And she was licking ice cream and then smiled. "I gave them to the garbage men directly this morning."

Charles turned and looked at Erik, who sighed and started walking to the mansion. Charles eyes widened when he realized what it was that Erik was thinking, "We are not…"

"Get in the car, Charles," Erik growled and stormed over to the garage.


	5. If Only She Was a Mutant

As was expected Erik and Charles never found the garbage bags, not for lack of trying on Erik's part, and both girls were treated to a very torturous experience by both men. Erik was having them work until they threw up and then keep going and Charles helped by projecting horrific images into their minds (Bri's was Erik wearing a dress, Syd's was spiders). After a whole day of this torture Charles called it quits and began to focus on the others and helping them with their mutations.

Syd was sitting in the upstairs lounge watching T.V. when something happened. The T.V. went fuzzy as if someone was messing with the Satellite dish, and then it flickered out entirely. Syd sighed and looked out the window expecting it to be raining, but no rain.

Syd got up and walked over to the window. And heard Moira yelling about the president making an address, but that wasn't what she was paying attention to. Someone (Erik) had moved (Erik) the Satellite (Erik) dish (Erik). And it was probably Erik. She opened her window and poked her head out. And looked down, to the common room window, where Moira was. She looked out to the stone railing and saw Erik and Charles leaning against it.

"Hey!" She called to get the boys attention. "Can you get that set back to where it was I was trying to watch T.V.?"

She heard Erik's laughter and was happy he realized it was a joke. Syd ducked back inside and shut the window then went down stairs. She met up with the boys, both smiling, in the entryway and walked with them into the common room where everyone else was cluttered around the T.V.

"That's where were gonna find, Shaw," Erik said gesturing with the remote.

"How can you be sure?" Alex asked.

"Two super powers facing off and Shaw wants to start world war 3, he won't leave anything to chance," Charles answered.

"So how long do we have?" Syd asked afraid of the answer.

"Three to four days before we need to leave in the jet," Hank answered.

"Well, then we best get to work," Erik said setting down the remote and turned to walk out of the room. "Brianna, come with me."

Bri sighed and followed him out. He was waiting in the front yard. He crouched down in a defensive position and was readying to fight. Bri knew what he was expecting her to attack but she did not charge him. She slowly approached and then began to circle him. Make him move and upset his defense. When he did she dove in. She wrapped her arms around his waist to upset his center of balance. Erik went down and was winded. Bri used those few seconds to climb on him and begin to throw punches. But in the time it took Erik had brought his fists up to block his face. He focused and threw Bri off, using her belt buckle and the zipper of her sweatshirt to pull her off of him.

"You're getting better, you can unnerve your opponent but at the same time you leave yourself open to mutation attacks. But then that is to be expected of your kind," Erik said holding her suspended not far in front of him. Bri was breathing heavy, not just from fighting but from Erik's closeness. "Hopefully you will be ready in four days."

Erik dropped Bri and walked back into the mansion. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. Erik had to be the only person she was okay with being a better fighter then her; well maybe she was okay with it.

Three days later Hank had perfected the way for Sean to fly. Everyone in the house was gathered in the two windows of Hanks lab, formally Charles' step-fathers study, and watched Sean's first flying attempt. Everyone except Syd and Bri, who were walking along the garden path.

"Awakkkk," Syd looked around shocked as something fell into the bushes right next to her. Syd looked up at a laughing Erik, Alex and Raven. She looked in the bushes as Sean began to climb out.

"What just happened?" Syd asked looking at the poor boy and helped pull him out.

"Hank's flying equipment," Sean panted looking up at the window over the bushes. Syd could barely make out the shape of Charles and Hank from behind the now closed window. Syd shook her head and walked into the mansion. She turned left and walked into the common room that was not far from the main door. She dropped onto the couch and stared at the chess board in front of her.

"Would you like to play?" Syd jumped and looked up at the doorway. Charles smiled and walked into the room. He was carrying a scotch, which Sydney did not see when he walked in, that he set down next to the chess board as he sat down. "Don't worry it's just so that I can relax, for some reason when I've had a few drinks the connection with others minds seems to vanish."

Syd laughed and nodded. She gestured to the board as a sign that he should go first. Charles moved his centermost pawn forward and then opened the scotch. He walked over to a small mini-bar like thing in the back of the room and brought over two glasses. "Thought you might want one," Charles muttered as he poured out two glasses and handed one over to her. He kicked his back and poured another, she took a small sip (as was proper for a woman in the 60s this was not her normal behavior).

Bri followed Syd into the mansion but instead walked up stairs to her and Syd's room. She sat on her bed with a book but quickly became restless. She missed T.V., she missed movies, and video games, she missed getting into fights with some of her pack mates because she was board, she missed Syd's random technological works (namely in the forum of videogame systems and communication techniques that could be used in class inconspicuously), she missed cell phones. But most of all she missed Fanfiction. She sighed and flopped back onto her bed. This was so not fair and she just wanted to do something, she had no idea what though. She got up and walked out of the room. She headed for the library and was almost there when she changed her mind. She turned around quickly and ran right into Alex.

"Sorry about that, Alex," Bri muttered as she went to walk around him and back to her room. Alex stepped in her way blocking her. Bri looked up and cocked an eyebrow questioningly. She stepped to the side again and tried to walk around him again. And again Alex blocked her path. "Do you have a death wish or something?"

"No I just want to talk," Alex said. He smiled at her and placed a hand on her arm. This caused a violent reaction from Bri who did not like to be touched without her permission. Alex let go of Bri and held up his hands as if showing surrender. "Look, I'm sorry, I just…well. I'm not really used to people, girls," Bri quirked and eyebrow again "women, not really paying attention to me."

Bri laughed, "So I'm hurting you ego? Sorry wasn't my intention but I'm not entirely interested in buff blondes, or men who are full of themselves."

"No I wasn't, saying that you should be interested in me…I…I'm really messing this up. Let me start over. Would you like to go out to dinner with me one of these nights and just talk? It doesn't have to be a date or anything just as friends. I've never really known a tuff woman, or one that isn't afraid to speak her mind. So what do you say?"

Bri sighed and looked at Alex, carefully, "Alright I'll go with you." Alex jumped and began a happy dance. "On one condition," Alex stopped. "We go as friends not a date, and you get the professors approval."

"Yes, yes of course," Alex said excitedly. He ran down the hall intent on looking for Charles. Bri sighed and walked back to her room. She dropped onto the bed and repeatedly slammed her head into the bed. She looked over at the clock on the wall. It was only 1pm. What the hell had she gotten into?

"Did you know that you hair color is a mutation?" Charles asked Syd. He was playing with the short strands of her hair. Sometime, Syd was not sure at all when, between the beginning of the chess game and getting halfway through the bottle of scotch, Charles had joined her on the couch. The game had been abandoned and they were just talking.

"Really?" Syd asked. She smiled and looked over at Charles. He was smiling like a mad-man and he truthfully could have given the mad hatter a run for his money.

"Yes it is a mutated MCL1 gene it makes your hair color change from that of the natural black hair color to your auburn color," Charles ran his hand through Syd's hair. Syd laughed and mimicked his action.

"I particular prefer your EYCL1 mutation," Syd said and Charles eyes went wide.

"I didn't know you studied genetics."

"I don't, I just know that one coding because it is my favorite." Syd went to drink some more scotch and found her glass to be empty. "Can you pour me some more, love?"

Charles nodded and picked up the scotch bottle, it was empty as well. "It looks like we could use some more,"

"I got it." Syd got up and walked out of the room.

"I'll get some snacks. If we don't eat something we will end up getting drunk," Charles followed her out but made his way to the kitchen.

"I think we already are," Syd muttered to herself as she ventured down to the wine cellar. She was able to make it down the stairs and grabbed one of the first bottles on the shelf. She turned and walked, carefully, up the stairs. She may not have been as drunk as Charles, thanks to her lack of drinking, but she was a very clumsy person sober, tipsy she was a mess. She walked into the common room but didn't see Charles, so she assumed her was still in the kitchen.

Syd made her way to the room and opened the door, "Hey Charles, I," She stopped and gasped, and then she dropped the bottle. In the center of the room were Charles and Moira, deep in a make-out session on the verge of sex in the middle of the kitchen. The two of them did not react to Syd talking, nor were they affected by her gasp. But the sound of the bottle of scotch breaking on the ground caused them to jump apart. Charles looked guilty, Moira looked guilty in all of her face but her eyes, and they were alight with pride and smug superiority. Syd was breathing heavy, attempting to hold back tears.

"Sydney, I," Charles started but Syd ran out of the room and the mansion. She was crying when she reached the tree line and could barely hear the sound of footsteps behind her. "SYDNEY!" Charles voice echoed around her. She kept running. "Sydney please stop, Syd. STOP!"

Sydney froze. She was unable to move. She struggled against the telepathic block. She pushed and pulled and finally gave up when Charles had stepped around to stand in front of her.

"Please listen to me," Charles begged. Syd closed her eyes and threw up mental blocks up. She didn't want reality to interrupt her thoughts. She was holding on to the small amount of time in the common room. But something felt wrong. Something about what Charles said felt off, but what was it?

'Mutated MCL1 gene, auburn hair.' He had been talking about Moira, not her. It was never her. Why did she always get herself into things like this?' Syd thought to herself, she was free to ponder what she wanted because she had walls up and Charles was still drunk, no matter how sober he seemed. "Let me go Charles," she whispered.

"No I need you to listen to me," Charles said. He stepped closer to her and let her go, and at the same time he wrapped his arms around her. "Please just listen to me. I need you in my life Sydney, I…"

"Now it's your turn to stop. You don't love me, don't kid yourself. You love Moira, so go back in there and do whatever it is you wanted to do with her. Don't worry about me, Charles. I'll be okay," Syd said, she broke away from the hug and stepped back away from him as she spoke. Charles nodded and walked past her to go back to the mansion. His face was calm as if nothing was happening but his eyes were sad and worried about her.

Syd waited until he was out of sight and then walked deeper into the trees. She was wondering for several minutes before she heard the sound of someone coming up behind her, and that someone was running. Syd turned, afraid it was Bri or worse Charles again, and was shocked to find that it was Hank.

"Hey wait up," he called. He was panting when he caught up with her and was slightly doubled over.

"Is something wrong Hank?" Syd asked. She knew that he was busy working on the outfits for the group and his serum, what could bring him all the way out here?

"No, no nothing's wrong, I…I wanted to show you these," Hank pulled two pairs of glasses from behind his back. "I finished them early for you. I hope they work to your specifications,"

Syd put them one on and clicked the button on the upper right part of the glasses. They powered on and red text filtered across the glasses, without interfering with her vision. "Hank, these are amazing. Thank you so much." Syd hugged Hank before her could even say anything. Hank smiled and wrapped his arms around her.

"It was no problem, I had your design and the electronics already, all I had to do was assemble it and that took no time at all."

Syd stepped out of the hug and looked at Hank quizzically, "Why do you always make everything you do sound so normal, it really is extraordinary what you can do. Take it from someone who has had to live life with people who are amazing, being normal, it's not all it's cracked up to be." Hank blinked and nodded. He looked down at the ground and then back at Syd, a loss for words.

"You don't understand what it's like to not be normal, to stand out and always be noticed. It's...like hell," Hank said he looked like he was in pain and continued. "I would give anything to be normal. Like you and Bri, I…I just want to be accepted."

"But you are, Hank, Raven loves you for you. The question is do you love her for her," Sydney asked. Hank went to speak and she stopped him. "And I don't mean the blond her, I mean the blue her, the real her. You don't have to tell me the answer, you have to tell her, tonight."

Sydney walked back to the mansion, giving Hank some much needed time to think. Something about Hank's presence had calmed her down and had proved to her that her actions earlier were childish. Neither her nor Bri belonged in this world so who was she to be upset with Charles for falling in love with a woman who he was probably supposed to marry in this world?

Syd entered the mansion and walked up to her bed room. She laughed when she found Bri passed out in bed. She climbed into her bed and blacked out.

One hallway and several rooms down Erik and Charles sat in the upstairs study playing chess. Charles was studying the board, trying to think of a way to get himself out of the bind Erik had just locked him in.

"Cuba, Russia, America, makes no difference; Shaw had declared war on mankind, on all of us," Charles moved his rook in an attempt to stop Erik from taking it next turn. "He has to be stopped."

Erik sat up and placed his drink on the table behind him and studied the board. But he also looked closely at Charles to continue this conversation, "I'm not gonna stop, Shaw. I'm gonna kill him." Erik paused waiting for a rebuttal from Charles. When none came he continued and grabbed his knight. "Do you have it in you to allow that?" And he took Charles knight. Charles chuckled to himself and studied the board again. Again no response. "You've known all along why I was here, Charles. But things have changed, what started as a covert mission, tomorrow the humans will know that mutants exist, Shaw, us they won't differentiate. They'll fear us and that fear will turn to hatred…"

"Not if we stop a war, not if we can prevent Shaw, not if we risk our live doing so," Charles responded all hopes of completing the game lost.

"Would they do the same for us?"

"We have it in us to be the better men."

"We already are. We're the next stage in evolution you said it yourself that…"

"No, no."

"Are you really so naïve that you believe they won't battle their own extinction?"

"…"Charles said nothing.

"Or is it arrogance?"

"I'm sorry!"

"After tomorrow there gonna turn on us, but your blind to it because you believe their all like Moira, Syd and Bri."

"And you believe their all like Shaw, but Shaw is one of us, not them, Erik. You have no reason to believe in these results."

"I have seen mankind at its worst. I did not just hear about it from the comfort of my cushy mansion I lived it. I was in that hell."

"Listen very carefully my friend; killing Shaw will not bring you peace."

"Peace was never an option. Not for me. Not now not ever. Mankind is never peaceful in anything it does so why should anything I do be based in peace?"

Charles sighed and let the situation dissolve. Their chess games were always the time used to get things like this out of the way. But it never interfered with their friendship, most times it actually strengthened it, this would be no exception. Charles was dangerously close to losing when Erik brought up another hot button top.

"So after today's fun experience, where do you stand with Sydney and Moira?"

"I don't understand what you mean. Sydney and I are close friend and Moira; well I'm not too sure about Moira."

"Really? Good friends? As I recall last night you were professing to me your love for her and how you thought she would be the one to compete your life, something to do with not being able to read her mind."

"I. Well. I'm not too sure that, she well…" Charles sighed and closed his eyes. "She's different; she is the exact opposite of Moira and doesn't seem to belong here…but enough about that, what about Bri?"

"What about her?"

"She has a very keen interest in you. How do you feel about her?"

"I don't, she is nothing more to me that a potential teammate…but she's a human."

"So what you are saying is if she was a mutant she would have meaning to you, but because she is not she is just a tool?"

"Exactly,"

Charles, who was drinking nearly choked on it, "You can't be serious?"

"I am entirely." The clock in the back of the room chimed two in the morning and Erik used it as a perfect excuse to cut this conversation short. "Now if you will excuse me, I'm going to go to bed, and I advise you to do the same."

Erik knocked over his king, a sign of surrender, and walked out of the room. Charles watched his friend leave as he reset the board. How could he be so coarse with something like this? Bri obviously loved him but he had no feeling toward her, was this how Syd felt? Charles sighed and walked out of the room, shutting the light off as he left.


End file.
